“Boston’s recent history is a story of building bridges amongst the city’s different racial, ethnic, and socio-economic groups. We have found that together we can be much stronger than the sum of our parts. Boston must continue fostering inclusiveness in all of our institutions and activities,” Zakim said in the statement.

“As a city councilor I will work tirelessly to increase our children’s access to a quality education, support our innovators and job-creators and make sure that Boston remains livable for all of our residents.”

Greg Timilty, 38, the co-founder of BlueFin Research and son of former city councilor Joseph F. Timilty, is also running for the seat. Timilty also ran in 1999 for an At-Large seat on the council.

"I ran as a progressive in '99 probably before it was cool, and I want to run the same type of campaign now just on a district level," he said in a phone interview.

Timilty, who has two children ages 2 and 5 and whose wife is a Boston Public School teacher, said improving the city's school system was his main reason for running.

"That's the biggest issue for me and I think this is going to be a real opportunity to work on these issue and take things in a new direction," he said.

Timilty praised the mayor's and school department's recent work to create more schools downtown, but said, "there's more that needs to be done."

Zakim, a Northeastern University School of Law graduate, has worked as a municipal bond attorney at Mintz Levin, as an attorney for Greater Boston Legal Services, and at the Lenny Zakim Fund.

“Through my work with the Lenny Zakim Fund I have continued to perpetuate my father’s legacy by engaging with hundreds of Bostonians throughout all of our neighborhoods,” Zakim said. “I have worked with them to combat some of the toughest problems we face, including youth violence prevention, housing, adult education, and college preparedness for our children."